THE CIDER:

​Sutliff Cider- We are dedicated to the culture of apple growing and their use in premium apple ciders. Our handcrafted ciders always contain 100% fresh squeezed juice and are never blended from concentrates. We use a combination of table apples that include, but are not limited to, Jonathan, Gala, Cortland, and Macintosh. The apples we use come from many local orchards, including our own small orchard on the estate where we are growing many varieties of traditional cider apples. We use an old style rack and cloth press because we believe this method allows our ciders to have exceptional taste and freshness.

Jasper Winery- is an "estate" style winery in the heart of the Des Moines metro. Being avid gardeners and enjoying all aspects of “the good life,” Jean and Paul Groben first planted grape vines in the year 2000. Described as “a hobby that went astray,” they continued to plant vines at their property located outside of Newton. In 2003, their son, Mason, graduated from the University of California, Davis, with a degree in viticulture and enology (grape growing and wine science). For reasons still unknown, a family business was formed. Later that year, grapes were first pressed, wines was bottled, and the fledgling operation was up and running. In 2007, it became apparent that the winery operation had outgrown it’s Newton location and needed to expand into a larger building. The Groben family was intrigued by the recent resurgence in downtown Des Moines. Therefore, they located a property near Grays Lake and began construction on the new winery building in fall 2007. The Des Moines winery opened summer of 2008. Stop by any time during our tasting room hours and enjoy complimentary samples of our wines -- then enjoy a glass out on the patio or inside by the fireplace.

THE CIDERS- 12 cider styles, to include:

Dry Hopped- Bright, crisp, citrus, semi-dry, and herbaceous. A cider that beer drinker’s can get behind. This is a dry, flavorful cider. Fermented with our house blend of yeast, this cider is aged on raw French oak for two weeks, while soaking in all the floral, herbal flavors from our blend of citrusy hops. To finish this cider, we back-sweeten with apple juice to round out the flavors and create that well-rounded dry taste.

Oaked Sour Cherry- Boasting flavors of oak, stone fruit, whiskey, vanilla, tart cherry and crisp apple, this is a wine-like, semi-dry, big flavored cider. It is refreshing and rewarding to your tongue, drinks like a sour fruit beer or sparkling rosé. It is crisp, tart and smooth. We add lots Michigan Montmorency cherry juice on the backend of fermentation and age this cider on a toasted French oak, leaving behind a flavor that will linger from sip to sip.

Hibiscus Rose- This cider is aged with loads of whole organic hibiscus petals, whole roses. Only oaked fir 3 days for minimal oak flavor in this cider. Its semi-dry. Hibiscus Rose is one of our driest. A wine like taste bursting with floral and earthy tannins.

Dry Pineapple- More please! Full of fruit flavors, bright pineapple sets the pace with a fresh apple taste right behind. Our Dry Pineapple cider is aged on French oak, which adds a buttery flavor that rounds out the pineapple.

Original Heritage Apple Cider- We have to highlight and give homage the apple in its simplest form. This is a semi-sweet cider aged on toasted French oak. Brite and refreshing, this cider is easy to drink and deeply satisfying.

Uncle Spruce (seasonal)- Our heritage holiday blend, aged on oak for months with spruce tips, spices and vanilla. This cider is pure holiday on the nose and tastes like winter.

Coyote Verde- is an homage to one of the first ciders we ever made, back when we were picking wild apples around the county and making cider in Clint’s basement. We’ve back sweetened it with pure fresh pressed granny smiths to make a sweet green cider. Coyote Verde is a bright and fresh cider with high confectionary fruit notes and acidity from tart granny smiths.

First Crush- sweet on the lips, crisp and light on the palate with a clean finish. Watermelon bubblegum pink bikini top, you always remember your first crush.

Winterset Cidery- We make craft hard apple cider right here in Iowa. Our ciders rely only on the apples themselves; we do not add any sugar or water like many mass produced hard ciders. Until our own orchard matures, we are buying fresh pressed apple juice from area orchards here in the Midwest. After fermentation our ciders are aged several months before we serve them to bring out the best flavors possible, never rushed or mass produced. When we do add other flavors, like raspberry, hops, cherry, and others, we use real ingredients, and we blend them on a very small batch basis to better control the flavor of the cider. We never use artificial flavors or ingredients.

The Cyder Market hard cider information for cider makers and drinkers in Iowa.

THE CIDERS:

Champagne Cider- This cider is fresh-pressed from Williams & Sons Orchards in Runnels, IA, then fermented at Peace Tree with a champagne yeast, to give it a dry balance to the tart and sweet apple cider.

Peace Tree Brewing Company’s Hard Cider- is now tapped! It’s a small batch and won’t last. We only made 10 gallons and be careful, ABV is approximately 7%.

Crimson Sunset Vineyards and Winery- Our venture started in 2005 by rooting cuttings sourced from local vineyards. Our first one acre vineyard was planted in 2006 with over 50 different varieties to test and see what grew best organically and which were the most fungal and pest resistant. In 2008 we then decided on the best 12 varieties and planted 6 more acres of grapes. In 2011 we planted 400 petite pearl vines. Our winery and cidery is in an 100% off-grid facility, powered by wind and solar. Our ciders are handcrafted from fresh pressed local apples (not organic), no cane sugar or water is ever added to our ciders. They are sweetened back with pure apple juice & local honey. They are made with all natural ingredients. Our original "Jacked Cider House" craft hard cider can be found at a store near you!

Jefferson County Cider Works- We believe the finest ciders starts with the best apples. That’s why here at Jefferson County Cider Works we manage our own orchard to grow and hand-select every apple we use in our beverage. While our vision and trees mature to perfection, we aim to support local purveyors, sourcing our first apple harvests within a 50 mile radius. Much like a quality vineyard uses estate grown grapes, we are with our crop every step of the way – from branch to bottle.

Peace Tree Brewing Company- is dedicated to brewing handcrafted, full-flavored beers with a great attention to quality. Our brewery began in 2009 in a former Nash Rambler car dealership on Main Street in Knoxville, Iowa. Head brewmaster Joe Kesteloot came to us with years of professional and home brewing experience and brought with him a true passion and creativity for developing his own unique recipes. We held the grand opening for our 20-Bbl brewhouse in March 2010, and within a month, were producing and bottling our brews – hand-delivering them to stores, bars and restaurants around the state. Since that time, we’ve grown quickly, adding six more 40-Bbl fermenters to our original lineup of two 20-Bbl and two 40-Bbl tanks. We now distribute across the state of Iowa, as well as parts of Nebraska.

Sutliff Cider- We are dedicated to the culture of apple growing and their use in premium apple ciders. Our handcrafted ciders always contain 100% fresh squeezed juice and are never blended from concentrates. We use a combination of table apples that include, but are not limited to, Jonathan, Gala, Cortland, and Macintosh. The apples we use come from many local orchards, including our own small orchard on the estate where we are growing many varieties of traditional cider apples. We use an old style rack and cloth press because we believe this method allows our ciders to have exceptional taste and freshness.

Wilson’s Orchard Hard Cider- Surrounded by old oak forest, Wilson’s Orchard occupies both sides of a valley with Rapid Creek winding through the farm. Our picturesque orchard is the perfect place to spend some quality time outdoors. Hear the birds sing, watch the muskrats play, smell the wildflowers. Oh yeah, and pick the best tasting fruit you have ever tried. We grow over 100 varieties of apples at Wilson’s Orchard, all chosen based on one simple criterion: great taste. You will find all kinds of apples: big ones, small ones, green ones, yellow ones, and purple ones, each with its own flavor and texture. The varieties we grow ripen from the beginning of August through October. In addition to fresh fruit, we also make a variety of homemade bakery items, apple cider vinegar, dried apples, fresh pressed apple cider, and now hard cider. Stop by the orchard during our season to enjoy a fresh baked apple turnover or homemade apple cider donuts. Or grab a pie to take home and bake. There’s something for everyone at the orchard!

Fishback and Stephenson- like most 80's movies, four friends spent their summer and fall nights walking through the streets and sneaking into backyards and driving down dirt roads searching out wild apple trees to make hard cider. We started with a juicer in the kitchen and then saved enough money to buy an antique apple press off craigslist for 40 bucks. We experimented with woodchippers and washing machines and shop presses. We got a custom fabricated screw press through alibaba that we ran until the hammers broke off. These days our cidery sits on a hill overlooking our home town. The four of us press, ferment, age, and bottle all onsite. Straight from us to you. Fishback & Stephenson Cider is pressed, fermented, aged, and kegged by The Cider House in Fairfield, Iowa.

South Cider- Light, hazy lazy summer day cider. It rings with genuine apple flavors and a tart finish.

Iowais well-known for the abundant food commodities it produces and its world-leading position in the development of cutting edge of food technology. The state is home to 32 of the 100 largest food manufacturers and processors, creating a critical mass of food companies and industry knowledge. Iowa is also gaining fame with over 40 apple orchards and now also boasts 8 premium cider makers.

THE CIDERS- 17 cider styles, to include:

Jacked Cider House Original- Sweetened back with fresh apple juice to give it that great apple flavor and a smooth finish. Naturally gluten-free.

Jacked Cider House Hopped Cider- Hopped with Cascade hops to give it an awesome floral hop aroma and citrus flavor. Barley malt was also added to give it a beer-like flavor. The only cider that is not gluten-free.

Blackberry- Our ciders are handcrafted from fresh pressed apples, no cane sugar or water is ever added to our ciders. They are sweetened back with pure apple juice. They are made with all natural ingredients. Flavored with real blackberries, honey, still 90% fresh pressed apples.